“The Phantom Tollbooth: Beyond Expectations” is a documentary about the classic children's book, The Phantom Tollbooth. It playfully explores the creation, creators, lasting impact and enduring relevance of one of the most universally beloved children’s books of our time.

On the road againOn the 50th anniversary of ‘The Phantom Tollbooth,’ Norton Juster talks about kids, history and hope.

If you ask Norton Juster, the hallmark of a literary career is a childhood spent in boredom. After all, Charlotte Brontë and her sisters grew up in an isolated Yorkshire parish house. Robert Louis Stevenson spent much of his youth as a virtual shut-in.

As for Juster himself? “I grew up before television, no computers, no little machines to do things for us,” the 82-year-old author of “The Phantom Tollbooth” told an audience at New York City’s BookFest last week who had gathered to celebrate the book’s 50th year in print. “It was a more privileged time,” he said, deadpan. “It forced me to use my imagination.”